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Strategies & Market Trends : Technical analysis for shorts & longs -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Johnny Canuck who wrote (40194)	9/5/2003 7:24:29 AM
From: Johnny Canuck	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 69356

DAILY WRAP-UP ************************************ The Nasdaq powered higher for the seventh straight session. Investors took cues from a parade of upbeat analyst comment about the technology sector. The positive mood helped lift the Dow and S&P 500 indices as well. A slew of mixed economic data contained disappointing statistics on the labor front, but was positive on the whole, aiding investor interest in equities. An upgrade of networking giant Cisco Systems, and an increase earnings outlook Procter & Gamble also helped matters. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished with moderate gains, rising 19.44 points or 0.2% to 9587.90. The Nasdaq composite rallied 16.08 points or 0.87% to 1868.98. The broad S&P 500 nosed ahead 1.7 points or 0.17% to 1027.97. Volume on the NYSE amounted to 1.446 billion shares. At the Nasdaq, some 1.883 billion shares traded hands. Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) raised its rating on Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO) to "outperform" from "in-line" a day after the company said its August sales outperformed predictions. Cisco rose 1.73% to $20.59 a new 52-week high. Chip stocks benefited from commentary at UBS Warburg, and a stellar financial report from National Semiconductor (NYSE: NSM). The brokerage said it was "more positive" on stocks in the semiconductor sector. National Semi rose 11% to $31.99 after reporting sales and earnings at the high end of expectations. The company also predicted revenue growth in the range of 4% to 7% for the current quarter. Lam Research (NASDAQ: LRCX) gained 1.68% to $25.49. The company was one of seven names in the sector upgraded to "buy" by UBS analyst Byron Walker. Intel (NASDAQ: INTC), the number one global chipmaker, rose 1.35% to $28.60 ahead of its mid-quarter update. Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) raised its earnings outlook for the seventh time in eight quarters. The consumer products giant climbed 2.96% to $91.43 after targeting 11% to 13% earnings growth for its fiscal first quarter. P&G said its over the counter drug business was driving the improved earnings picture. Elsewhere Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) raised its quarterly guidance based on back-to-school sales of notebook computers. The electronics retailer slipped 0.77% to $52.69. Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) slipped 0.91% to $30.60 after revising its earnings expectations lower. The drugmaker said a shift in inventory valuations related to its Pharmacia acquisition would cut its expected per share earnings to 70 cents, from the previous forecast of 86 cents. Kraft (NYSE: KFT) lowered its third quarter earnings expectations as the result of higher spending on marketing and promotions. The food products giant, which is known for Maxwell House coffee and Philadelphia Cream Cheese, dipped 1.6% to $29.37. Retail sales figures for August reflected a strong back-to-school shopping season. Discount retailers reaped the bulk of the benefit. Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), which is the world's largest retailer, added 0.17% to $60.08. The company said same store sales for the four weeks ending August 29 rose 6.9% compared to a year ago. Gap (NSYE: GPS) shares were pummeled, losing 13.43% to $18.18 after the company said August sales at stores open at least one year rose 4%. That measure was below expectations. Economic news was largely positive, except for an unexpected rise in new claims for unemployment insurance. That measure rose by 15,000 last week to 413,000 from a revised 398,000 in the prior week. Claims above the level of 400,000 are generally associated with weakness in the labor market. The Institute for Supply management said its measure of economic activity in the services sector was flat with the July figure of 65.1. It's the highest reading since the index was launched in July 1997. Economists had predicted a dip to 63. Productivity in the second quarter was revised higher to 6.8%. Factory orders rose 1.6%, outpacing expected growth of 0.9%. In small cap trading, the Russell 2000 climbed 1.85 points or 0.36% to 512.56, while the S&P600 index was up 0.96 points or 0.39% to 249.83. Some of the small cap stocks making big moves included Dendreon (NASDAQ: DNDN). The company's shares soared 36.92% to $8.53 on volume of 19,232,221. The FDA expedited the review of the company's treatment for prostate cancer, Provenge. Finisar (NASDAQ: FNSR) shares slid 6.99% to $2.13 on volume of 6,789,568 after the fiber optics equipment firm reported a loss of 20 cents per share. That compares with its year ago loss of 19 cents on a per share basis. In commodities trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, October crude oil futures slid 51 cents to $28.98. October natural gas advanced 11.6 cents to $4.81. December gold futures gave back $1.00 to $374.00. Canadian stocks ended the session with moderate gains, extending the TSX's win streak to four sessions. The market had leadership from stocks in the technology group. Industrial and materials stocks were also moving higher, while bank and energy issues traded below the break-even line. The TSX composite gained 14.49 points or 0.19% to 7594.85, and the small cap Venture index eased 0.77 points or 0.06% to 1324.57. In the information technology group Celestica (TSX: T.CLS) climbed 5.72% to $26.73. Nortel Networks (TSX: T.NT) tacked on 7.84% to $5.23 in a second day of gains following its blockbuster deal to furnish wireless network equipment for Verizon Wireless. Plane and train maker Bombardier (TSX: T.BBD.B) rallied 6.65% to $5.93. Transat A.T. (TSX: T.TRZ), the owner of the charter airline Transat, said it has begun talks to sell its French online travel agency unit, Anyway. The company's shares were even at $5.65. Air Canada (TSX: T.AC) shares were lifted 7.26% to $1.28 after the company announced a major seat sale, as well as new flights to Cuba and Latin America. In earnings news MDS Inc. (TSX: T.MDS) reported higher third quarter profits that missed analysts' expectations by a penny per share. The Toronto health sciences company attributed its revenue and earnings growth to better performance by its analytical instruments business. MDS shares fell 1.66% to $18.90. Elsewhere in the group, Angiotech Pharmaceuticals (TSX: T.ANP) tumbled 5.72% to $54.21. Patheon (TSX: T.PTI) gave up 4.18% to $14.45 after the drug outsourcer reported flat profits for its fiscal third quarter. Descartes Systems (TSX: T.DSG) stumbled 7.08% to $3.41 after reporting a second quarter loss. The Waterloo, Ontario company, which operates an Internet-based logistics network, said quarterly sales slipped 16% to US$15.2 million versus US$18 million in the comparable period a year ago. The company lost 29 cents a share US, and forecast a per share loss of 10 to 12 cents US in the current quarter. The company also announced its chairman and director Peter Schwartz has resigned. Wireless security firm Certicom (TSX: T.CIC) fell 16.99% to $1.27 after reporting wider losses in its fiscal first quarter. The company cited a challenging selling environment for its loss of five cents per share US, compared with its year ago loss of three cents per share US. Wheaton River (TSX: T.WRM) gained 6.69% to $2.46 after it announced the purchase of rival junior miner Miranda Mining (TSX: V.MRM) for $38 million in cash. Separately, Wheaton River announced it would acquire the 70% stake in the Los Filos gold property in Mexico from Teck Cominco (TSX: T.TEK.B) for $48 million. Teck Cominco shares were up 0.36% to $13.80 and Miranda shares skyrocketed 40% to close at 70 cents. Gains in the gold group boosted the materials subindex. Barrick Gold (TSX: T.ABX), the largest producer in the country, put on 1.08% to $28.00, and Kinross Gold (TSX: T.K) rallied 0.38% to $10.38. Active stocks on Bay Street included Impact Energy (TSX: T.IEY), which gained 6.06% to $1.40; BCE Inc. (TSX: T.BCE) was off 0.73% to $30.08; and ATI Technologies (TSX: T.ATY) fell 2.09% to $20.17. In market-related news, the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) announced that it would open a permanent office in Montreal and coordinate a committee to determine policy for the regulation of securities markets across the country. Alimentation Couche-Tard (TSX: T.ATD.B) advanced 1.56% to $16.25 after it posted record quarterly earnings and sales. The largest operator of convenience stores in Canada said its acquisition strategy bolstered bottom and top line growth. The company earned 28 cents per share, up from 23 cents a year ago. Sales grew to $895.1 million from $680.9. The Canadian dollar was worth US$0.7286.